


Dregs

by PepperPrints



Category: Fate/Zero
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-04
Updated: 2013-02-04
Packaged: 2017-11-28 04:31:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/670300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PepperPrints/pseuds/PepperPrints
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even though Aoi had been happily married for some time now, Kariya had only been formally introduced to her husband once, and Kariya didn't imagine that the man appreciated him very much.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dregs

**Author's Note:**

> For 31_days. The prompt was "my Beloved is a steeped herb" but I diverted too far. 
> 
> The only thing in Tokiomi's "likes" is teatime.

When he first met Tohsaka Tokiomi, the scene went about as well as Kariya had expected. Aoi had invited her to meet him at her home before they took her daughters out, and Kariya had felt hesitant about the whole idea. Even though Aoi had been happily married for some time now, Kariya had only been formally introduced to her husband once, and Kariya didn't imagine that the man appreciated him very much.

 

It was beyond the usual suspicion anyone would have when his wife was such good friends with another man: that other man was a member of a warring family, and even if Kariya had been disowned for abandoning the path of magic, he was still of Matou blood.

 

Aoi was still getting the girls ready, and she invited him to wait inside while she finished up. Kariya had almost objected, but followed her to the main room, where her husband sat and regarded him with a steady smile and cool, blue eyes.

 

The whole scene made Kariya feel horribly out of place. This house was grand and beautiful, the windows pouring in sunlight. Tokiomi was posed with elegance that didn't seem forced or faked, slender legs crossed and strong hands folded neatly in front of him. The table was set for tea, and while Aoi and the girls were going out, Tokiomi had prepared two places regardless.

 

“Kariya,” he greeted, gesturing at the space across from him. “Sit. I'll pour you some tea while you wait.”

 

“Is it that time already?” Aoi asked teasingly, her hand squeezing his shoulder gently as she passed by on the way to the next room.

 

Kariya very much wanted to refuse, but then that would make him appear to be the rude one. He did as he was told, his body tense and his nerves alight. Tokiomi filled a cup for him, the tea a very rich shade of red and lightly steaming.

 

“Do you take milk or sugar?” he asked, and Kariya mentally debated if the head of the Tohsaka family would take an opportunity to poison the Matou heir.

 

“Both,” answered Kariya after a moment, then tentatively adding: “please.”

 

Tokiomi smiled, and it did reach his eyes, but there was something untrue about it. The tea turned pale as he poured the milk in, and Tokiomi added a spoon of sugar, stirring it lightly before he placed the cup on its saucer, handing it out to Kariya.

 

“It's cool enough to drink now,” he told him, picking up his own cup and taking a small sip. It didn't escape Kariya's notice that Tokiomi drank his tea plain; he probably thought little of Kariya for sweetening his own.

 

Deciding that it would be incredibly stupid for someone like Tohsaka Tokiomi to poison his tea, Kariya went ahead and took a sip. It was good; better than he expected. He usually didn't have a taste for this sort of thing.

 

“I hear you'll be joining my daughters in the park,” remarked Tokiomi, and Kariya felt far too defensive. How often did Tokiomi come out to play with his children? Kariya knew he didn't get invited to every trip... but neither Rin nor Sakura remarked that their father did any of the things Kariya did. That was why they liked him; how he treated them was special.

 

Kariya didn't have any of that stubborn magi pride holding him back.

 

“Does it bother you?” asked Kariya boldly, and his shoulders tensed when Tokiomi gave a soft chuckle.

 

“Of course not,” he said with a mild sigh, as if speaking to a child, which only served to agitate Kariya more.

 

“Don't lie!” he said, more sharply than he should have. “ _Tohsaka_.” He put a sour emphasis on the name. “You know who I am, and you don't mind me being with them?”

 

Tokiomi was quiet for a moment, drinking his tea. He took a more generous sip this time, and it seemed very deliberate as he sat his cup back on its saucer. “Kariya,” he said, “take a look.”

 

Kariya hesitated, giving a skeptical glance at the man before he accepted the outstretched cup. Since Tokiomi drank his tea plain, the liquid had been mostly clear, and it showed what remained at the bottom of the glass.

 

The dregs. Kariya frowned. “Do you want me to read your fortune?” he asked, and Tokiomi chuckled again, shaking his head.

 

“Kariya,” he began calmly. “You are no mage. The root of your family has potential; you had potential, but it has been squandered. There is nothing left of the Matou. You're dregs at the bottom of the cup, bitterly lingering after everything good has already been drained out of you.”

 

Kariya's entire body went tense, and the cup clattered against the saucer as his hands began to shake a little. He didn't know why it made him so angry; he wasn't a mage. He didn't want to be a mage. He ran from the sick line of his family because it disgusted him. He should have been agreeing with Tokiomi... so then why was he so insulted?

 

Kariya had never been jealous. Aoi was beautiful, lovely, and had been his friend for years, but he hadn't cared that she married Tokiomi. All that concerned Kariya was her happiness, and if this man made her happy, then Kariya was happy too. But now..

 

“You don't threaten me, Matou Kariya,” said Tokiomi bluntly, taking the cup back from Kariya and filling it again. “Drink your tea and enjoy your day with my wife and daughters. They always seem to enjoy your company.”

 

But now, Kariya felt the first bit of hate churn cruelly in his stomach.


End file.
